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Monday, August 11, 2008
This week we're publishing several blog posts dedicated to helping you with one response code:
404.
Response codes
are a numeric status (like 200 for "OK", 301 for "Moved Permanently")
that a webserver returns in response to a request for a URL. The 404 response code
should be returned for a file "Not Found".
When a user sends a request for your webpage, your webserver looks for the corresponding file for
the URL. If a file exists, your webserver likely responds with a 200 response code
along with a message (often the content of the page, such as the HTML).
So what's a 404? Let's say that in the link to "Visit Google Apps" above, the link is
broken because of a typing error when coding the page. Now when a user clicks "Visit Google Apps",
the particular webpage/file isn't located by the webserver. The webserver should return a
404 response code, meaning "Not Found".
Now that we're all on board with the basics of 404 errors, stay tuned for even more
information on making 404 errors good for users and for search engines.
Written by Maile Ohye, Developer Programs Tech Lead
[[["Easy to understand","easyToUnderstand","thumb-up"],["Solved my problem","solvedMyProblem","thumb-up"],["Other","otherUp","thumb-up"]],[["Missing the information I need","missingTheInformationINeed","thumb-down"],["Too complicated / too many steps","tooComplicatedTooManySteps","thumb-down"],["Out of date","outOfDate","thumb-down"],["Samples / code issue","samplesCodeIssue","thumb-down"],["Other","otherDown","thumb-down"]],[],[[["\u003cp\u003eThis series of blog posts focuses on the \u003ccode\u003e404\u003c/code\u003e response code, which indicates a "Not Found" error when a webserver cannot locate the requested webpage/file.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eUnderstanding response codes, like the common \u003ccode\u003e200\u003c/code\u003e for "OK" or \u003ccode\u003e301\u003c/code\u003e for "Moved Permanently," is important as they represent the webserver's status in response to a request.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eA \u003ccode\u003e404\u003c/code\u003e error occurs when a user clicks a link, but the linked webpage/file is missing or inaccessible due to issues like a broken or mistyped URL.\u003c/p\u003e\n"],["\u003cp\u003eThe upcoming posts will provide guidance on optimizing the user experience and search engine handling of \u003ccode\u003e404\u003c/code\u003e errors.\u003c/p\u003e\n"]]],["Webservers use numeric response codes to indicate the status of a URL request. A `404` code signifies that a requested file was \"Not Found.\" When a user requests a webpage, the server searches for the corresponding file. If the file isn't found, the server should return a `404` error. Future posts will discuss optimizing `404` errors for both users and search engines. Response codes such as `200` means the file is found and `301` means the file has been permanently moved.\n"],null,["# It's 404 week at Webmaster Central\n\nMonday, August 11, 2008\n\n\nThis week we're publishing several blog posts dedicated to helping you with one response code:\n`404`.\n[Response codes](https://wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_HTTP_status_codes)\nare a numeric status (like `200` for \"OK\", `301` for \"Moved Permanently\")\nthat a webserver returns in response to a request for a URL. The `404` response code\nshould be returned for a file \"Not Found\".\n\n\nWhen a user sends a request for your webpage, your webserver looks for the corresponding file for\nthe URL. If a file exists, your webserver likely responds with a `200` response code\nalong with a message (often the content of the page, such as the HTML).\n\n\nSo what's a `404`? Let's say that in the link to \"Visit Google Apps\" above, the link is\nbroken because of a typing error when coding the page. Now when a user clicks \"Visit Google Apps\",\nthe particular webpage/file isn't located by the webserver. The webserver should return a\n`404` response code, meaning \"Not Found\".\n\n\nNow that we're all on board with the basics of `404` errors, stay tuned for even more\ninformation on making `404` errors good for users and for search engines.\n\nWritten by [Maile Ohye](/search/blog/authors/maile-ohye), Developer Programs Tech Lead"]]
